"Party and state leaders" (Chinese: ; Vietnamese: Lãnh ÃÂạo chủ chá»Ât của ÃÂảng vàNhànðá»Âc) is a governmental and political jargon currently used in political discourse of China, and a lesser extent of Vietnam, in reference to specific senior political leaders in those countries. The jargon is used in In both formal and colloquial contexts, and referred to a defined group of leaders in those countries.
In Chinese political discourse, "party and state leaders" refer to a limited group of individuals currently holding approximately 100 specific positions in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) that are classified into the top two ranks in the Civil service of China:
In Vietnamese political discourse the term refers to individuals holding, as of September 2025, five specific offices. While it remain a formal designation in the Government of Vietnam, the term has been gradually replaced by the colloquial term four pillars in day-to-day use since the early 2000s, which was further formally updated to the five pillars in September 2025.
The term has also been used in the past in China and Vietnam in references to top political leaders of the former Soviet Union.
The senior leaders of the following institutions qualify as party and state leaders:
Currently, the officeholders of eight titles are qualified as national-level principals and the holder of ten additional titles are qualified as national-level deputies. Many of the titles have multiple positions, and a number of individuals hold multiple positions on the list. Approximately 70 individuals currently formally qualified as party and state leaders, holding among them approximately 100 specific positions. Of the office holders, 6 are women, 19 are not official members of the CCP.
The officeholders of eight titles, (one with multiple positions) are formally classified as national-level principal. The position of national vice president is not among the offices classified as such, but the current vice president Han Zheng is granted the standing and privileges as a national-level principal leader due previous service in one of these offices. The current occupants of these offices are as follows:
Officeholders of the following offices qualify as national-level deputies and therefore considered among the party and state leaders of China.
The following are the holders of positions of the Chinese Communist Party (elected or appointed around the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party held in October 2022, unless otherwise noted) and offices of the People's Republic of China (appointed around the subsequent 14th National People's Congress held in March 2023 unless otherwise noted) including those who have been formally removed from office or are currently under investigation.
In addition to the holders of the above office, historically, members of the standing committee of the Central Advisory Commission (existed between 1982 and 1992) were considered Party and State leaders. The 20 military leaders who were conferred titles of "Marshal of the People's Republic" and "Grand General of the People's Liberation Army" in 1955 were all considered former Party and State leaders when they were alive.